A consumer textile, for example apparel or bed sheets, may possess several characteristics that make it desirable. One desirable characteristic may be comfort for fabrics that come in contact with human skin. Another desirable characteristic may be durability, as consumer textiles may be laundered in machine washers and dryers that may tend to shorten the useful lifespan of the textile. In commercial operations, machine laundering may occur more than in residential or small-scale settings, which may further shorten the lifespan of the textile.
For textiles that contact human skin (for example T-shirts, underwear, bed sheets, towels, pillowcases), one method to increase comfort may be to use cotton yarns. Cotton may have high absorbency and breathability. Cotton may also generally be known to have a good “feel” to consumers.
But cotton may not be robust when placed in an environment with heavy machine laundering. To increase durability while retaining the feel and absorbency of cotton, the cotton yarns may be woven in combination with synthetic fibers such as polyester. Cotton may be used as warp yarns, while synthetic yarns may be used as weft yarns.
Constructing the textile using yarns with a smaller denier may also increase comfort. Using these relatively fine yarns may yield a higher “thread count.” A thread count of a textile may be calculated by counting the total weft yarns and warp yarns in along two adjacent edges of a square of fabric that is one-inch by one-inch. The thread count may be a commonly recognized indication of the quality of the textile, and the thread count may also be a measure that consumers associate with tactile satisfaction and opulence.
However, fine synthetic weft yarns, such as polyester, may break when fed into a loom apparatus. Cotton-polyester hybrid weaves may therefore be limited to larger denier synthetic yarns that the loom may effectively use. Thus, the thread count, and its associated comfort and luxury, may be limited.
In an attempt to claim high thread counts, some textile manufacturers may twist two yarns together, such that they may be substantially associated, before using them as a single yarn in a weaving process. A twisted yarn may yield properties in the textile similar to the use of a large denier yarn. Manufactures of textiles with twisted yarns may include within the advertised “thread count” each strand within each twisted yarn, even though the textile may not feel of satisfactory quality once it has been removed from its packaging and handled by the consumer. The Federal Trade Commission has taken the position in an opinion letter that it considers the practice of including each yarn within a twisted yarn in the thread count as deceptive to consumers.
Because fine denier yarns may break in a loom apparatus, cotton-synthetic blends may be limited to low thread counts and thus relatively low quality and comfort.